What does all this mean, anyway? What is Pride month? And now that President Obama has made it “official” by announcing that June is National Pride Month (as if we didn’t know that!), what has changed?

Personally, I am disheartened by the way our trusted gay media outlets and many of our own nationally recognized LGBT advocacy organizations (such as Pride committees) festively encourage LGBTQ persons to drink their way to oblivion just to have an illicit sexual experience with someone they have never met, and then perhaps waking up to the face of their own desperation. I do not know of ANY Pride festival in the nation that is not sponsored by at least one alcohol company, unless perhaps they are so small they are still seeking those ever present alcohol sponsorship dollars.

And we wonder why we have a higher drinking prevalence. Good grief! I am just amazed at the alcohol ads in the gay press around pride (and any other time!). Have we sold our soul as a community? I know from personal experience, that most Pride Boards will not even discuss reducing or eliminating alcohol sponsorship. They cannot see where this marriage of money, alcohol, and Pride has gotten us thus far.

Just once, I would like to see real Pride in our lives presented as a focus of one of our own festivals. The harmony and family, the support and companionship exemplified by our faith in our own. Why are we not continuously questioning the need of our Pride Boards to take alcohol money? These are the folks that make our Pride into a business, a nationally recognized business venture bringing in millions of dollars to select cities all over the nation. Where are the questions?

Sometimes I am just sick over it…and other times I don’t give a damn…but never have I been able to come to that happy place that so many of you seem to be in, just ignoring it and saying things like, “oh…it is just all in fun”.

How many of us have sero-converted because of Pride events where we drank too much? How many of us have discovered that we regret our lst year’s Pride shenanigans? How many of us are looking forward to the oblivion of the druken weekend so we can pretend that we do not have to be responsible for our actions….because we got drunk?

Well, I suppose I should see the silver lining. If it wasn’t for this type of carelessness, for your poor choices, I would not have a job.

I pray for the day when there is no need for the work that I do. I look forward to the time when Pride will mean just that…healthy and proud LGBTQ communities. And I challenge you to ask the hard questions. Get involved!

I love my community, I do! I am committed to being of service, but I want to have some fun, too. If I keep seeing all of our “disparities” because of my work, and never get to focus on our absolute fabulousness, then I will check out. I know I will. We don;t get funded to work on the parts of our community that are doing great, we get funded to work on our health disparities. That makes sense, right? We get $$ to help make things better. But how do we get to showcase what is already working great?

I had an idea to offer cash for images of healthy living photos. I though, “hmmm…this will be a great idea. We will pay folks for their pics of fun and fabulous frolics, and then we can share with the general population all of our wonderful photos. Queers having fun…loving and living it up. Queers traveling, sightseeing, having babies and family, eating and exercising, playing with pets, planting flowers, whatever! Sounds fun, right?

Apparently not. After several months, lots of $$, and an insane amount of effort, we have very few photos to show for it. Why? Do we not know how to see ourselves in a healthy way? Do we not understand how much of who we are, of what we are, or where we go and what we do is healthy living?

My theory is that we are so used to feeling guilty for everything we are, that we don’t dare submit images of ourselves as healthy! We are so used to being the scapegoat community, the outcasts, the ones that society points their shriveled fingers at, that we forget how fabulous we are. Well, I am here to say, “F&*^ that!” Submit your images now. Show us how fabulous you are! Keep them coming, Minnesota Queers, and share yourselves with us. I know how great we are…and I want to make sure you all know, too.

I am the Director of Programs for RHI. We are a small agency that is seeking to improve the health of LGBT Minnesotans. I love that! That is the reason I am here. I care about our health as a community. I understand things from a public health perspective, yet also from a community perspective. As a community, we have many social norms that need to change before we can offer those questioning and just coming out young folks more healthy, happy, queer role models. It is hard to come out at any age, but to do so when you are young is significantly more challenging in my mind. We can help this by offering healthy role models and mentors, a community that cares about one another, a community that has many cultural events that do not center around drinking and getting intoxicated. We owe our youth that much. They are our future! (Ok, here I start getting mushy, so I’ll stop. You all know what I mean!)